Hyundai i40 Tourer

Efficient estate is one of the best family cars on sale

This is the average score given by leading car publications from
16 reviews

Five-year warranty

Big boot

Comfy and spacious

Limited rear visibility

Some cheap feeling trim

Rear seats don’t fold flat

£20,945 - £28,945
Price range

5
Seats

56 - 67
MPG

Review

The Hyundai i40 is the Korean firm’s answer to models such as the Volkswagen Passat estate and the Ford Mondeo estate. With the competition getting tougher (both the Ford and the Volkswagen are brand new), Hyundai has just given its large family estate car a facelift.

Revisions include LED daytime running lights, revised tail lights and new alloy wheel designs. Inside, interior plastics have been improved, there’s a new touchscreen sat-nav system, and high-spec cars now come with DAB digital radio.

Also new is a twin-clutch automatic gearbox that’s available with the top specification engine and offers better fuel economy than the conventional automatic model. All new i40s get stop-start technology and an aerodynamic new grille (with a flap that closes at speed) to make the new model even more efficient.

Despite its notable attributes, some reckon it’s not quite enough to topple the class-leading Volkswagen Passat and Ford Mondeo Estates. It does undercut them both on price, though, and comes as standard with an excellent five-year/100,000 mile warranty.

Interior

Very roomy, but quality is patchy in places

As a sign of just how far Hyundai has come over the past few years, the build quality of the i40’s cabin is enough to rival amongst the best in the class. The materials used are all to a high quality, and inside it has a fairly upmarket feel.

That being said, it’s still not quite as well built as some of its premium rivals, and some critics weren’t fond of the “fussy” control layout. They were, though, very impressed with the space on offer – it’s not the biggest estate on sale, but there’s still more than enough room for the driver and passengers. At 553 litres with the seats in place, the boot is very accommodating too, though some testers suggest that is a little narrower than some.

Inside there's a startling amount of space. Legroom is particularly impressive, allowing both front and rear passengers to stretch out at the same time

Honest John

Available trims

Driving

Comfortable ride and a capable cruiser

Being a fairly large and porky estate car, the i40 Tourer isn’t going to win any handling awards. However, it’s still a fairly decent car to drive, especially on the open road where the i40 is very refined at higher speeds and the suspension does a good job of ironing out bumps.

Quite a few testers weren’t fond of the body roll, especially on the slightly softer ‘Blue Drive’ models, and many weren’t too pleased with the heavy steering and compromised rear visibility.

Comfort is the most important facet for any car in this class. The i40 has a smooth and supple ride that irons out larger bumps with the readiness you’d hope for from so large a car

Top Gear

Engine

Smooth and economical, if a little sluggish

There are just two engines on offer in the i40 Tourer, since the old petrol units were dropped. That’s no great loss, since the diesel units – both based on a 1.7-litre, four-cylinder design – were the better options anyway. Combined economy of up to 65.7 mpg with Blue Drive models explains why, and they make the i40 Tourer one of the most frugal cars in its class.

They don’t make it one of the quickest though – for that 114hp Blue Drive expect to take almost 13 seconds to reach 62 mph from a standstill. The 135hp models are a little more brisk, hitting the same marker in a shade over 10 seconds, but no i40 Tourer feels truly potent. Refinement is good and critics say they’re at their best on a motorway cruise – the rest of the time you’re “frequently changing gear to keep it in its sweet spot”.

Choosing between the two diesel options is a bit tricky, as they’re pretty much the same engine, one has 114hp and the other is the more powerful 139hp. All i40 models – bar the automatics – can achieve more than 65mpg and cost just £30 to tax.

Which one you opt for really depends on whether or not you think the extra power justifies the price premium.

Learn more about a specific engine

The Hyundai i40 Tourer 1.7 CRDi 115 BlueDrive reviews are pretty impressive. Though quite a few testers weren’t satisfied with the car’s overall pace, they did acknowledge that it’s a very refined and affordable estate car that has hugely impressive running costs.

With a fairly narrow power band, the i40 Tourer was never going to be a quick car, but there’s enough torque across the rev range to permit decent pace without having to work the engine too hard. However, it’s refined enough at higher speeds to make a very good motorway cruiser, and the standard fit ‘Blue Drive’ engine technology means the i40 Tourer can return an impressive 65 mpg and emit just 113g/km of CO2.

Overall, despite its flaws, the oil burning i40 Tourer is a good all-round car that’s certainly worth considering if you’re in the market for a fairly large estate car. If you do need a bit more oomph, though, you may want to opt for the more powerful and equally efficient version of the same engine.

The Hyundai i40 Tourer 1.7 CRDi 136 reviews are generally impressive. The flagship diesel i40 Tourer seems to be fairly popular with the testers, as they all seem to be fairly impressed with it.

Quite a few had positive comments regarding its impressive all-round capabilities, and some reckon it’s the pick of the range. However, a majority wouldn’t go so far as saying it’s the best in the class.

As it shares the same 1.7 diesel engine with the ‘lesser’ 115PS model, they generally have the same attributes. Refinement overall is good, it’s well suited to motorway journeys and is fairly efficient, especially when specified in ‘Blue Drive’ trim. However, despite there being a bit more power and torque on offer in this model, quite a few critics did reckon that it still felt a bit underpowered, and the absence of stop/start technology means that it’s more expensive to tax than the cheaper and more efficient diesel.

Overall, the diesel motor in the i40 Tourer is a really good one, and possibly shows the car in its best light. However, if you are interested in it, do take a look at the less powerful but almost identical diesel engine in the range, as it is a little bit less expensive to buy and run.

These are general, non-engine specific reviews. They give a nice overview of what the car is like, without focusing on just one engine/version.

My worry was that a 1.7-litre turbodiesel developing 135hp might not be up to the job of hauling a large estate. That proved unfounded at motorway speeds where it was an effortless and quiet companion

The Telegraph

Safety

Excellent test results and laden with safety tech

The i40 Tourer achieved a strong five star result in the Euro NCAP crash tests, aided by generous equipment levels.

Seven airbags are equipped as standard, as are anti-lock brakes, stability control, hill start assist (which stops you from rolling back when pulling away on a steep hill) and emergency brake assist.

Every i40 Tourer features a host of driver aids, including emergency brake assist and electronic stability control

What Car?

Value for money

Well-equipped and economical for the class

Compared with similarly sized rivals, the i40 Tourer is, like most other Hyundais on sale, fairly good value for money. Even the cheapest in the range come with plenty of kit as standard, and the five year unlimited mileage warranty beats the competition hands down.

However, its rivals aren’t that much more expensive in comparison, and the i40 is a bit pricey by Hyundai standards, especially the flagship models which come with the appropriately named ‘Premium’ trim.

The range-topping i40 Premium SE was added in March 2013. It adds to the Premium trim with the Comfort, Vision and Assist packs.

With so much standard kit available you won’t find yourself having to splash out optional extras

Parkers

Conclusion

Overall, the Hyundai i40 Tourer is a very good estate, and certainly one of the best of the Korean firm’s current offerings. It’s fairly affordable for the class standard, has plenty of space and equipment and has a broad range of talents and capabilities.

Don’t be put off by the badge, Hyundai makes some highly competent cars now and the the i40 Tourer represents fantastic value in this class. While it can’t match the Ford Mondeo or Volkswagen Passat for handling, build quality, or choice of engines, it can easily match them in other areas, offering bags of space, practicality and comfort.

7.6

wowscore
This is the average score out of 10 given by leading car publications from
16
reviews

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